God’s Kingdom

 

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. A lot of people misquote this verse. Saying thy will be done “on”earth. The kingdom of God is in us. Mankind was made out of the dust of the earth. In order for God’s will to be done on earth, first it has to be done in earth.

Religion wants to change man from the outside in. It wants us to conform to a certain image, order, or rule. So that we can glory in our works or outward appearance.You can wash and dress up a pig, but its nature will never change.

Being born again is a change of our nature. No matter how hard we try to turn over a new leaf or make a resolution, we fail. Even if we experience a degree of success, it always comes up short. We know deep down that we can’t live holy or righteous, but for short periods of time.

Thank God for a new nature. It’s much more than listening to or being directed by our conscience. We can have a seared conscience that we’ve hardened or supressed to the point of self deception.

God’s ways are so much higher than ours.

Our fleshly nature made from the dust of the earth can never bring forth His kingdom. By allowing His nature to live in us, we will bring forth His kingdom in the earth.

~Ricky Robinson

Image Credit © Tammy Sanders

Receiving Holy Spirit

  When I was growing up, my family attended a small Evangelical Methodist Church.  We sang the traditional hymns, memorized the Bible in Sunday School, and had inspiring messages about God’s Word from the pulpit.  I was born again at age three, but  I don’t remember anyone teaching about Holy Spirit.  The only time He was mentioned was when the Trinity was mentioned:  Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.  That is how I remember Him as a child.

When I was fourteen, I attended church with an elderly neighbor.  She attended a Fire Baptized Holiness Church.  While there, I experienced the first person I had ever heard speak in tongues.  When we got home, I asked my neighbor what happened.  She told me that the Holy Ghost spoke through the Sister.  I asked her how He spoke and she replied, “He just comes and speaks sometimes to help people through life.  When my son died in Vietnam, Holy Ghost spoke to me through my daughter.  That was what helped me to bear the pain.”  I still did not understand, but I was even more curious now.

I rebelled against God for a few years, but when I was eighteen-years-old, I came back to my first love.  The very next day, a friend of mine told me that her mother wanted to invite me to church that night since they were having revival.  Perfect timing!  I knew I was born again, but I also knew that this church was different because it was a Church of God!  I went and –  you guessed it – the evangelist gave an invitation for anyone who wanted to be filled with Holy Ghost.  I went up, and despite one little lady telling me to “Hold on” and another one telling me to “Let go,”  I received the infilling of Holy Spirit that night.  I left that place speaking in tongues.  Even though I did not understand what I was saying, I knew inside that He was a good gift.

Ever since that night, my life has been different.  Don’t get me wrong, it has not been perfect by a long shot.  I am still human and miss it daily. However, I have a personal teacher who lives on the inside of me and His name is Holy Spirit.  He has guided me in rough places. He has comforted me through sad times and has helped me through many times when I goofed up so badly, no one else would stick with me.  Holy Ghost is all of this and more!

Holy Spirit is for every born again believer today.  Jesus said in Luke 11:11&13 “If a son shall ask bread of any of you, that is a father, will he give him a stone?  Or if he asks a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?  If you then being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father, give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him?”

Let Him help you. Speaking in tongues is the key to praying out God’s plan for your life, so what are you waiting for?

~Lisa Brannen

Image credit: ©Tammy Sanders

The Hunger Games

“And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.” ~John 6:35 

“Blessed [are] they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” ~Mat 5:6

You can tell what people are hungry for by watching what they spend their time waiting for, what they spend their time doing and what they spend their time talking about.

I know people who spend every second of their day playing video games. When they’re not playing, they’re talking about playing or planning when to get back to their games so they can play some more. Why do they do that? Escape is what they’re hungry for.

I know other people who talk non-stop about their jobs…they recount every second of their day, they talk plans and strategies, all of their thoughts revolve around their work. Why? Success is what they’re hungry for.

There are folks who obsess over what other people think about them. They plan everything they do and everywhere they go based on what other people will say or how others will react. They do this because they’re hungry for the approval and acceptance of those people.

I’ve even known people who spend every minute thinking about how to fix other people. These folks are constantly devising plans to change other people, programs to put them on to “improve” them, and exercises to run them through to test them. They run around trying to counsel others and give advice for them to change. Why do they spend so much time and energy on these things? Because they’re hungry for control.

Figuring out what people are really hungry for is kind of like driving by a strip of restaurants on a Friday night and seeing all the people standing outside waiting for a table. Some people are hungry for steak, some for seafood, some for Mexican… you can tell what they’re hungry for by seeing where they are and how long they’re willing to wait for their meal. Same principle with people in every day life… what do they hang around? What are they willing to wait long hours for? What do they talk about and plan about throughout the week?

What are you hungry for? It’s Easter Sunday, so you might be hungry for ham or chocolate rabbits, but what else? Do you really hunger after people’s approval or acceptance? Or are you  hungry for a new house or car? A nice long vacation to the beach? Do you hunger after a promotion on your job or a new relationship? Success? Fame? Belonging? Validation?

I know the religious answer we all want to give to this question is: I am hungry for more of God in my life. We want to say that, and many of us probably really want to mean that… but do we? Do we spend more time thinking about Him and His Kingdom than we do about our own success or pleasure? Do we spend time doing the things that He has called us to do, or do we give the majority of our time to the things our flesh hungers for? Can people around us tell that we are more hungry for God than we are for our dinner out this Friday night?

Jesus made it pretty simple; if we hunger after Him, His Kingdom, and His righteousness, then we would be filled with those things. If we seek His Kingdom, He will take care of all of our needs. It seems pretty obvious to me that so many of us are running around, seeking fulfillment in our lives, because we are more hungry for other things than we are for Him. We say we’re hungry for Him, but our actions show otherwise. We’re playing a game.

You’ve probably heard about the smash movie hit, The Hunger Games, playing in theaters right now. The movie is based on the best-selling series of the same name written by Suzanne Collins. It’s a post-apocalyptic sci-fi story in which the lead character has to fight others to the death in order to survive and win a food prize for her community. There’s more to it than that, but the story got me thinking… how hungry am I, really, for God? Am I hungry enough to fight for what I believe in? Am I hungry enough to sacrifice my own desires and dreams? Am I really hungry enough to fight for others around me? Or am I just playing a game, saying things one way and behaving another way.

Think about it as you go through your week this week…

(image from thehungergames.wikia.com via Google)

“First Lady of the Struggle”: A Tribute to Mary McLeod Bethune

Mary McLeod Bethune: God’s Ambassador to Education

“At Moody [Bible Institute], we learned to look upon a man as a man, not as a Caucasian or Negro,” said Mary McLeod Bethune. “A love for the whole human family entered my soul and remains with me to this day.” The fifteenth of seventeen children born to former slaves, Mary rose from the grips of poverty to become one of the greatest Kingdom ambassadors for education the world has ever known.

When her dream to become a missionary to Africa crumbled in 1895, Mary obtained a teaching position at the Haines Institute in Augusta, Georgia. Work at Haines fired Mary’s imagination of what she herself could achieve. She soon realized “that Africans in America needed Christ and school just as much as Negroes in Africa…. My life work lay not in Africa but in my own country.” She decided to commit herself to improving the education of young Black Americans.

In 1904, Mary arrived in Daytona Beach, where she had a prophetic dream of crossing a river. A man rode up to her on a horse as soon as she made it safely across the river. The man was Booker T. Washington, the country’s leading black educator. Washington took a soiled handkerchief from his pocket to wipe the sweat from his brow, then produced a glittering diamond and handed it to Mary. “This is for your school,” he told her. Inspired by her dream and her faith in God, Mary went on to found what later became the first fully accredited four-year college for Blacks in Florida. Students were instructed in spiritual matters as well as academics, often taking over the pastorates of the many mission churches Mary founded for migrant workers throughout the swamps of Florida.

The Lord continued to open doors for Mary, bringing her into contact with the wealthiest and most influential people of the early 20^th Century. Booker T. Washington, himself, became a friend and colleague. Sponsors of her school and mission work included the Rockefellers, Carnegies, and Guggenheims. Her voice advocating for Black education found an ear with President Calvin Coolidge and later President Franklin Roosevelt. She became the first African American woman to head a federal agency under the Roosevelt administration. Her friendship with Eleanor Roosevelt greatly enhanced her status and gave her access to important political leaders. After Roosevelt’s death, President Truman named Mary Bethune to his Civil Rights Commission as the only African American woman consultant working to draw up the charter for the United Nations. She became known as the “First Lady of the Struggle” for her influence in early Civil Rights activism.

Mary often insisted that she had been blessed with a rich and wonderful life even though she had been born into poverty. At the end of her life, she wrote that she wanted to pass on the richness of her life’s experiences by inspiring acts of love and fellowship in others. Such a legacy, she hoped, would foster education and interracial cooperation. “Faith, courage, brotherhood, dignity, ambition, responsibility—these are needed today as never before,” she wrote. Truly, her words still ring true today.

~Linda Frederick

Hippity Hoppity (a politically incorrect article on Easter)

I was curious about the origin of the Easter Bunny, so I did some digging and here’s what I found. Remember, you’ve been forewarned by the title!

The Easter Bunny or Easter Hare got his start much like good old Kris Kringle – in Germany – or more specifically in the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. And just like Santa Claus, the whole point was to take an extremely important and foundational event in the Christian faith, slap a fuzzy round face on it and turn it into a reason to stay home from church to “spend time with your family.” (Oh yeah, political suicide going on here)

Why a rabbit? What’s with the eggs?

You guessed it – it’s really all about sex. Or more specificall, fertility. The Easter Bunny hops along in spring randomly spreading eggs everywhere it goes.

Bunny. Spring. Eggs. You can’t get more fertile than this!

And what’s with all this celebration of fertility? You guessed it – when you trace it all back down – we’re actually celebrating the Greek goddess of “spring-like fertility” named Eostra.

The worship of this goddess was so ingrained in the Greek culture (along with the two days of feasting and celebration that occurred every spring) that the Roman Catholic church decided to adopt some of its customs, give it a little name change and associate it with the resurrection of Christ. Your “mind brakes” might be screeching about now, but think about it: the word “Easter” isn’t anywhere in the Bible. It had to come from somewhere!

And you’ll love this…remember the traditional Easter dress every one of us girls had to wear as children? Yep, that tradition was started by the cult who worshiped Eostra; during the festivals, they had the maidens dress all in white like the goddess as a symbol of untapped fertility. (Cold shiver)

And why a chocolate bunny?

Actually, that one I get – everything is better when it’s made of chocolate.

Just a little more about the crazy egg thing…

It seems that it is traditional for Catholics to dye their Easter Eggs red to symbolize the blood of Christ. Part of the reason there was such an abundance of eggs for Easter was due to the fact that eggs were traditionally not eaten during Lent. However, early Protestants (who do not partake of Lent) didn’t stress over the quantity or redness of their eggs and decided that they liked the variety of colors used by the religiously indifferent to symbolize the many colors and varieties of flowers that begin to bloom in spring (Personally, I prefer the Paws kits that have stickers so you can make your eggs have the crazy eyes!).

Now, I could take this to a serious place and tie the fertility theme back to the blood of Christ because it was the shedding of His blood that birthed the New Testament church and the real whole point of Easter is to remember not only His broken body, shed blood and death on the cross, but that He died for the express purpose of being raised up and born again from death back into life. Why? So that we, who are already dead because of sin, can be born again into that same life with Christ!

For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son so that whosoever believes in Him will not perish by have everlasting life. ~John 3:16

But, my faithful readers know me by now, and know I’m not gonna go to the serious place. Instead, I’ll leave you with this final reason why bunnies should NOT be associated with Easter:

~by Anessa Back

Apocalypse Redux

I know I’ve posted this article before, and it’s probably not kosher to re-blog things, but I still feel that I need to address some of the misconceptions that are being broadcast about God’s involvement in some of the natural disasters that have occurred over the last few years. So here it is… Apocalypse Redux.

For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.  – Romans 8:19

Apocalypse.

What images come to your mind when you hear that word? Helicopters flying low over the jungle canopy or giant meteors crashing into the Earth? Images from Mel Gibson’s movie, Apocalypto? Or maybe your mind goes to the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Or blood, fire, and smoke. Perhaps the Antichrist and all his armies gathered in the Valley of Megiddo?

Legend, lore, and religion have conditioned us to think, “death and destruction” when we hear the word, apocalypse. In the Greek, the word apokalupsis means: a disclosure of truth concerning divine things before unknown; used of events by which things or states or persons hitherto withdrawn from view are made visible to all; manifestation; appearance; revelation of future things relating to the consummation of the divine kingdom.

We have been duped by the enemy into thinking that apocalypse is something to fear: something to escape. But the Bible says that all of creation is groaning in expectation of the apocalypse – the manifestation of – the sons of God. Only true sons of God can establish the Kingdom. Only sons of God understand that authority has been given to them to bear fruit, multiply, increase, replenish the earth, and subdue it by taking dominion over it.

In truth, apocalypse brings Kingdom truth and restoration. Apocalypse brings life, light, abundance, and increase. The apocalypse of the sons of God is what all of creation has been waiting for; it’s what God has been waiting for. His desire to establish a Kingdom of sons has not waned since the Garden. That desire is waiting for the manifestation of – the revealing of, the apocalypse of – the sons of God who will cause it to come to pass.

It’s time we stopped letting people blame God for the natural disasters caused by the groaning of creation. We – The Church – have a part to play in how long these disasters will continue. It’s time for the sons of God to get the revelation of who we are and what God’s purpose for us is. It’s time for the Kingdom of God to be established in the earth. It’s time for apocalypse…NOW!

Don’t Lie About My God

Still St. Patrick’s Day and all, but I am still pretty ticked off about some comments made by people on “so-called” Christian TV about the devastation in Japan. Listen folks, God isn’t the one sending hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes, and other devastation to try to teach anyone a lesson. He doesn’t work like that, and you’d know that if you’d pick up your Bible some time. Romans 8:19-22 says it like this:

For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.

In other words, the earth is falling apart while we are all waiting for the sons of God to be matured and manifested. Of course, if the sons of God are busy telling lies about our Father and causing the world to hate Him instead of love Him, then we’re going to keep on having the same kind of destruction we’ve seen. If the sons of God are going to bicker and backbite, bring about strife and confusion, then the world will not know Him. Try reading John 17, or any of the epistles of John and say that God would send an earthquake to wipe out people. That’s ridiculous.

So, in keeping with my “happy” St. Patrick’s Day theme… here are two limericks I have written in response to the false accusations about God…

 

There once was a silly old man

Who said God had it in for Japan

How can you say such a thing

About my God and King

When destruction is not part of HIS plan

 

 

There was an old preacher named Pat

Who claimed God wants Japan to be flat

That doesn’t show love

From my God up above

Foolish man, you’re not right about that!

 

Swimming Up Stream

“Take a lesson from the salmon, you who are dead in your religion. Learn from their ways and die to your own desires, live an extraordinary life and pursue your destiny in Christ!” – Proverbs 6:6 LFT (Linda Frederick Translation)

We have been issued a challenge to live the life Christ provided for us on the cross. It’s not easy… it’s not a cake-walk…it’s not for sissies! Walking in all the power, anointing, and grace that belongs to us is challenging to our mind and our flesh. Many Christians never do walk in the fullness of their salvation; in fact, religion makes it easy to lay back and settle for fire insurance and a one-way ticket to paradise. It doesn’t take much sacrifice or effort to live the “Christian life” of most Christians today. All you have to do is attend the church of your choice only when you feel like it and apply only the Word that is easy, comfortable, and doesn’t contradict your grandma. As Kenneth Hagin so aptly put it, “Any old dead fish can float down stream.”

Christians not walking in the fullness of their salvation can drift along lazily following whatever is trending in Christianity Today while singing “Que sera, sera… whatever will be, will be”. It’s so easy to just “go with the flow.” After all, one symbol of Christianity is a fish, right? Isn’t that what fish do…go with the current? Well, that’s certainly not the life we preach and pursue here at Gateway. We embrace more of “salmon” approach to living the Gospel.

What does that mean? Well, consider the Pacific Salmon for a moment. A few years ago, we were visiting in Seattle and went down to the shipping locks to watch the salmon run. It was amazing to watch them push against the current and navigate through natural and man-made obstacles, forcing themselves to head in the direction of their spawning grounds. I remember thinking how much easier their lives must have been cruising around in the open ocean. Yet, here they were, leaving the easy provision of one ecosystem, while risking entrapment by bears and humans to enter into another. We’ve all seen it on TV and marveled at the strength and determination of these fish, but most of us don’t realize the most fascinating aspect of their journey… these fish are dying.

See, salmon aren’t dead fish, floating forgotten down stream. Nor are they content to remain living fish, swimming comfortably around filing their own bellies. These salmon are dying fish, struggling and fighting against raging currents, leaping over rocks, desperate to fulfill their destiny. Once they transition from the open sea into the fresh water, their bodies begin to change and they, literally, begin to die. The Sockeye Salmon even begins to turn a brilliant, crimson red. Why do they do it? The sole purpose of their return is to lay or fertilize eggs and to die in the spawning grounds so their bodies provide nutrients for their newly hatched young.

Okay, so what does that have to do with the church? Let’s go back to that symbol, the fish, again for a moment. I know the scriptures talk about us becoming fishers of men. But we also need to recognize the fish that was broken and divided to provide food for the multitudes. Early Christians used the symbol of the fish to represent themselves, not the lost. The Greek word, ICTUS was used as an acrostic to mean (in English) “Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior”. So, while we are fishermen, we are also fish.

In case you haven’t noticed, we’re not all about succumbing to the easy tide of trendy religion here at Gateway. We acknowledge the fact that we are transformed by the Blood, and like the Sockeye, this transformation drives us to give our life for others. We die daily to our selves, striving to enter into the Kingdom and turning from the comfort of the flesh to fulfill destiny and purpose. We understand purpose and sacrifice and the need to lay a foundation of Kingdom life for future generations. Like the salmon, we travel upstream dodging the enemy and overcoming obstacles so that, at our end, we will hear, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.”

What kind of fish are you? Are you a dead fish, filled with dead stinking religion? Are you a live fish, swimming comfortably following your own pursuits, filling your own belly? Or are you a dying fish, laying down your life for the sake of the Kingdom? Consider the salmon!

~Linda

Stand Your Ground

“Stand your ground; don’t fire unless fired upon, but if they mean to have a war, let it begin here.” – John Parker

Is it a pivotal moment in history that makes a man or woman great, or is it a great man or woman who brings about a pivotal moment in history?

In the predawn light of April 19, 1775, Captain John Parker called the roll of his militia company on Lexington Green in front of the town meetinghouse. He ordered his small group of about 60 men to charge their guns with powder and ball and stand ready for the British troops who were making their way towards town by the soft light of a waning moon. In the gray of the early morning, the scarlet-clad British soldiers appeared, and halting not far from the line of Minutemen on Lexington Common, loaded their muskets. The patriots stood firm. As the Minutemen did not immediately obey the command to lay down their arms, the British commander wheeled his horse, and waving his sword, shouted: “Press forward, men! Surround the rascals!” At the same moment some random shots were fired over the heads of the Americans by the British soldiers, but without effect. The Minutemen had scruples about firing until their own blood had been spilled. The British leader was irritated by their obstinacy, and drawing his pistol, discharged it, at the same moment shouting, “Fire!” A volley from the front rank followed the order with fatal effect. Some Americans fell dead or mortally wounded, and others were badly hurt. There was no longer hesitation on the part of the Minutemen. The conditions of their restraint were fulfilled. The blood of their comrades had been shed; and as the shrill fife of young Jonathan Harrington set the drum a-beating, the patriots returned the fire with spirit, but not with fatal effect. The blood of American citizens stained the green grass on Lexington Common.

So ended the opening act in the great drama of the American Revolution. The bells that were rung on that April morning tolled the end of British domination in the old thirteen colonies. When the firing began, Samuel Adams was lingering on a wooded hill nearby, and when the air was rent by the first volley on Lexington Common, he uttered these remarkable words: “What a glorious morning for America is this!” With the vision of an inspired seer at that moment, the sturdy patriot perceived in the future the realization of his cherished dreams of independence for his beloved country.

There’s something amazing about a man or a woman with a Reformer’s Spirit. Sam Adams, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Paul Revere, John Parker, and the handful of men whose names we have forgotten were all inspired by a desire to see true change and transformation in the government of their land. They were reformers, one and all; they possessed a different spirit.

Down through HIStory, God has anointed men and women “for such a time as this.” The Holy Spirit IS the Spirit of Transformation. He has kindled His fire in hearts inspiring His servants to activate change and bring about transformation in the Church, in governments, in education, in business, and in all the other realms impacting the daily lives of humankind. Like those few men who stood shivering with chill and anticipation on Lexington Green that fateful spring morning, those anointed with the Reformer’s Spirit understand that shifts in history come only through sacrifice and action. They are willing, inspired by Grace, to lay down their lives for a cause larger than themselves…the Cause of Christ. They’re not scared. They don’t run. They realize they are sent to take back all the enemy has stolen or caused to be withheld. They make History.

Consider this: Jesus is the ultimate Reformer. You have His spirit within you, if you are born again. That Reformer’s Spirit will challenge the status quo of religion and tradition and stand willing to bring about change for the sake of the Kingdom. That spirit causes HIStory to be made.

The bells are ringing, the enemy is on the march… shoulder the weapons of warfare you have been given and stand ready for the fight. God has called you into His Kingdom for such a time as this. You are a great man or woman who is destined to make HIStory!

~Linda Frederick

Pretty

What if today you heard heaven yell,

“Hell is up ahead!” Wouldn’t you listen?

And we all like to sing a thing called pretty,

and make it our reality. Isn’t that religion?

Well, I don’t want pretty; I want beauty,

because pretty doesn’t cut it for what’s been done for me.

 

Pretty is fine, but treasure is meant to keep.

What does it mean to put it deep, and also make it shine?

Heaven help me, because I’m going to trash

the treasure You gave me and make it just another

fashion trend. Let me wear what I need to wear,

and I know You’ll appear where I appear.

 

To lose a voice is hard, but to gain one is harder.

I hope it doesn’t sound pretty to You. I hope

it sounds beautiful just like You are. I know

it doesn’t sound right, in fact I’m sure its out of tune,

but You are welcome to coach me. I will sing of

how all the knees will bow. Even the pretty ones.

 

~by Josh Brannen, guest writer